Generations
Court Packing: How Franklin D. Roosevelt Reshaped the U.S. Supreme Court
TweetShareShareIn 1937 nobody was more popular than Franklin D. Roosevelt. His “New Deal”–hinged to Social Security and unemployment benefits–catapulted FDR to a 523-8 electoral landslide (60.8% of the popular vote) to a second term in 1936. Only Ronald Reagan would come close to that margin of victory in 1984 with 525-13 electoral votes (58.8% popular…
Read MoreThe Day Television Lost Control: “The Heidi Game”
TweetShareShareIt was the football game that changed the rules of broadcasting. It was the game that showed how the democratic, decentralized people’s voice could overrule the authoritative, centralized control of network brass. It was the game where a little girl in the Swiss Alps and superstar athletes toppled how we would watch live sports forever.…
Read More“Back to God”: The Spiritual Message and Power of Dwight D. Eisenhower
TweetShareShare In 1940 church attendance in America hovered at 49%. Not bad but not great either. Meanwhile our nation was gripped in a battle against communist aggression–both at home and abroad. The Soviets had fired the first shot in the “space race” and America was behind the eight-ball. On February 7, 1954, President Dwight D.…
Read MoreThe Day Teddy Made America a New Global Nation
TweetShareShare In our global culture and shrinking world–thanks to cyber communications–it’s hard to believe there was a time (120 years ago) when few people ventured more than a day’s walk (20 miles) from home. That was the significance of this day in 1906. It was the first time a U.S. President visited another country…not…
Read MoreAddicted and Afflicted: Social Media, Self-Image and Substance Abuse
TweetShareShareFacebook has been all over the news this week. On Tuesday, October 5, 2021 a whistleblower named Frances Haugen appeared before a Senate subcommittee with accusations against the social media giant Facebook. She claimed that founder/CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook deliberately hides and dismisses research that shows its platform is harmful to adolescents, particularly girls.…
Read MoreFirst World Series: How Baseball Opened the American Century
TweetShareShareNo sport framed 20th century American culture more than baseball. In fact, America’s story–how we worked, what we believed, the battles we fought and the glory we shared–is found in the game. From the rise of a new industrialized economy to racism (against Jew, Italian, blacks) to celebrity culture, baseball was there. And every time…
Read MoreAmerica: The New Rome?
TweetShareShareIt’s been said that Rome wasn’t built in a day…and that’s true. But it also didn’t fall in a day. And the reasons it collapsed were impacted by certain political decisions, unavoidable events and socio-cultural shifts. In general, there were five factors that eroded Rome’s foundation over three centuries: 1. UNEXPECTED PLAGUES. Between 165 and…
Read MoreYou Should Be Dancing: How The Bee Gees Reinvented Their Lives and Revived Disco
TweetShareShare Irving Stone studied great men his entire life…their habits, attitudes and qualities. He finally concluded their primary characteristic was RESILIENCE. “You cannot destroy these people” he said, “Every time they’re knocked down, they stand up.” And sometimes they even dance. Need an example? Consider the Bee Gees. This trio of brothers formed in…
Read MoreThe Tale of Two Kings: How Two Men Began and Ended the Modern Civil Rights Movement
TweetShareShareThe modern civil rights movement began and ended with edicts by two “Kings.” Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech on August 28, 1963 launched it, while Rodney King’s “Can We All Get Along?” television message on May 1, 1992 ended it. It was three decades of “movement” that abolished segregated schools, housing,…
Read MoreGen X Goes To Jail
TweetShareShareGen X (born 1961-1981) is the most incarcerated generation in American history, as the Pew Research confirmed this past week. According to the Bureau of Justice, the number of Americans in prison currently has returned to the 1995 level, and continues to fall annually. The rate had been rising exponentially every year since 1980, when…
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